Hershey Sweet Lights 2026: What Happened and Where to See Lights Instead

Hershey Sweet Lights is not running in 2026. Hersheypark’s Christmas Candylane page, checked October 22, 2026, answers its own question, “Will Hershey’s Sweet Lights be offered in 2026?” with this sentence: “No. After 20 seasons of holiday magic, Hershey Sweet Lights will not return in 2026 as we focus on growing Hersheypark Christmas Candylane.” The same answer is on Hersheypark’s general FAQ page. That is the official statement. It thanks families who made the drive-through a tradition, and it points them to Candylane. It does not say the drive-through is closed forever, and this page does not add that claim.

Candylane is the replacement Hersheypark names, and it is a different kind of night. You are inside the park, on foot, with a ticket, not in a line of cars. If the search was really for a drive-through, Lancaster County has two dated ones on pages checked the same day: the Christmas Spirit Light Show at Penn Medicine Park in the city, and the Stone Gables Estate Christmas Light Drive-Thru in Elizabethtown. Dutch Winter Wonderland and the Strasburg Rail Road Santa trains are on the calendar too. They are not drive-throughs. Hershey’s Chocolate World did not publish a Christmas calendar on its own site that day, so it is not listed as a 2026 light stop below.

Every dollar figure, hour, date, and street address in this guide is a figure a page showed on October 22, 2026. If a page did not show it, it is not here. Driving miles are a separate measurement from the same day: the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder matched each published street address, and an OSRM driving route ran from 25 South Queen Street at Penn Square in downtown Lancaster to that pin. The result is a route estimate. It is not a promise about traffic on a Saturday in December. For the wider choice between the two towns, the Lancaster versus Hershey comparison is the longer version, and the Lancaster Christmas guide covers the rest of a county holiday trip.

What Hershey Sweet Lights was

Hershey Sweet Lights was the drive-through. A Hershey destination story published November 15, 2025, and re-read on October 22, 2026, describes the season that ran nightly through January 4, 2026. It calls the attraction a two-mile drive-through with more than 500 illuminated, animated displays, and it says the show had been a holiday tradition for more than 20 years. Hersheypark’s 2026 FAQ uses the same “20 seasons” count when it says the drive-through will not return. The 2025 story places that season’s entrance at 1183 Sand Beach Road, Hershey, Pa. 17033, between Route 39 and Sand Beach Road, about half a mile north of Hersheypark Drive. That address was last season’s entrance. It is not a 2026 event, and driving there this November will not put you in a ticket line for Sweet Lights.

The same 2025 story is also where the old vehicle prices lived: online single cars in a range, a van price, and a gate price for a standard car. Those numbers were for a season that has already ended. They are not 2026 prices, and this page does not repeat them as if a ticket still exists. What is worth keeping from that story, besides the size of the show, is Hershey’s own crowd note about that drive-through: weekend evenings and holidays were the busy times, and Monday through Thursday were typically less busy. That sentence is about Sweet Lights, not about Candylane, Penn Medicine Park, or Stone Gables. Those 2026 operators do not publish a crowd calendar. Their posted hours are in the sections below.

2026 light shows compared

Sweet Lights is in the first row so the answer is visible before the alternatives. It has no 2026 dates and no 2026 price. The other rows are events whose dates were on a page checked October 22, 2026. “Price as shown” means the figure on that page, not a guess at what a December Saturday will cost after taxes.

Event	Town	Type	2026 dates	Price as shown	Drive from Penn Square
Hershey Sweet Lights	Hershey	Was a drive-through	Not returning in 2026	No 2026 ticket	Not an event this year
Hersheypark Christmas Candylane	Hershey	Walk-through park	Select dates Nov. 13, 2026 – Jan. 3, 2027	1-day $66.99; 4-pack $57 per person	29.2 miles, about 46 minutes
Christmas Spirit Light Show	Lancaster	Drive-through	Nov. 27 – Dec. 31, 2026	$25 per vehicle up to 8; $35 for 9+; $75 season pass	0.95 miles, about 3 minutes
Stone Gables Christmas Light Drive-Thru	Elizabethtown	Drive-through	Nov. 20, 2026 – Jan. 2, 2027, with listed closures	$30 regular vehicle; $50 large vehicle, per Discover Lancaster’s Rates list	21.9 miles, about 31 minutes
Dutch Winter Wonderland	Lancaster	Walk-through park	Select dates Nov. 14, 2026 – Jan. 3, 2027	No single-day price on the park page that day	4.8 miles, about 11 minutes
Strasburg Rail Road Santa trains	Ronks	Train, not a drive-through	Nov. 21 – Dec. 24, 2026, depending on the train	Online adult prices $42.40 or $47.70 by train	9.8 miles, about 21 minutes

Checked October 22, 2026. Source links are in each section. The Stone Gables row follows that listing’s dates section and Rates list. The same Discover Lancaster page has a shorter date heading and a different Admission line, and both conflicts are spelled out below rather than smoothed over.

Photo: Hersheypark entrance, Hershey, Pennsylvania, April 1, 2023, by Hmich176, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. It is a daytime entrance photo. It is not Candylane, and it is not Sweet Lights.

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane

Hersheypark Christmas Candylane is the event the park tells Sweet Lights visitors to use instead. The page says it is open select dates from November 13 through January 3, and the tickets on that page say they are valid on any public operating day through January 3, 2027. “Select dates” matters. The page checked on October 22, 2026 did not print a day-by-day calendar, so this guide does not invent which November weeknights the gates are open. Confirm the date on Hersheypark’s calendar before you drive from Lancaster.

The address on the page is 100 W. Hersheypark Drive, Hershey, PA 17033. From Penn Square that pin is 29.2 miles and about 46 minutes by the route measured October 22, 2026. The Hersheypark versus Dutch Wonderland guide is the age-by-age version of the same drive if the group is splitting a theme-park day and a light night.

What the ticket includes, in the page’s own description, is admission to Hersheypark and to ZooAmerica North American Wildlife Park, select family rides and attractions, a stroll through the candy-themed TREEville, and over 5 million lights. The page also names the Fire and Ice Experience, the Twinkling Thru Time show at the Chevrolet Music Box Theatre, and Santa with all nine reindeer at the Mary N. Bright Airfield. New for 2026, in the FAQ on that page, are the Fire and Ice Experience, a larger TREEville walk with lights, lasers, fog, and two treat stops, the Estate of Evil Holiday Open House, four new festive cars and light displays on the Twin Turnpike, and a holiday soundtrack on Holly Jolly Laff Trakk. None of that is a drive-through. You park and walk.

Prices printed on the page that day, each plus applicable taxes and fees:

• Family 4-Pack Bundle: $57 per person, with $99.95 crossed out. The card says the bundle includes four Hersheypark admission tickets and free parking for one vehicle. The badge on that card reads “Includes FREE Parking.” Tickets valid on any public operating day through January 3, 2027.
• 1-Day Any Day Ticket: $66.99, with $89.95 crossed out. The card says “Visit Any Day This Year.” The ticket description says it can be used during your favorite season, and the line under the price says the ticket is valid any public operating day through January 3, 2027.
• Junior/Senior Any Day Ticket: $54.99, with $89.95 crossed out. The description says junior tickets are for ages 3 to 8 and senior tickets start at age 62.
• 2-Day Any Day Ticket: the card shows $50/Day, with $65 crossed out. The description says the two days do not have to be consecutive or in the same season.

The page does not label the crossed-out numbers with the word “gate.” It does include a “Buy Online & Save” label in the ticket block. Free parking is stated on the 4-pack. This page does not claim the 1-day ticket includes parking, because the 1-day card did not say that. The same Candylane page also prints, in bold, “Check back soon for a Christmas Candylane ticket pre-sale!” The dollar figures above are what the page displayed on October 22, 2026. They are not a claim that a separate Candylane-only pre-sale had opened, and they are not a promise that the same numbers will be on the button the week you buy. Read the total, including taxes and fees, on the day you purchase.

Two more lines on that page are useful and easy to miss. Breakfast with Santa at The Chocolatier is listed for select dates between November 27 and December 24. The page did not show a breakfast price, so none is repeated here. The Winter Weather Promise says that if weather causes a majority of the seasonally available major rides to close for more than 60 minutes of your visit, Guest Services will issue a free return voucher valid any operating day through June 30, 2027. Checked October 22, 2026. Source: Hersheypark Christmas Candylane.

Christmas Spirit Light Show at Penn Medicine Park

This is the close drive-through. The operator’s site, christmasspiritlightshows.com, says the show is back for a ninth season at Penn Medicine Park in downtown Lancaster. The address on that page is 650 N Prince St, Lancaster, PA 17603. From Penn Square the Census pin is 0.95 miles and about 3 minutes. You are not leaving the city.

The 2026 schedule on that page is November 27 through December 31. Hours are Sunday through Thursday, 5:30 to 9:00 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 5:30 to 10:00 p.m. The page describes a mile-long track and hundreds of thousands of color-changing lights set to Christmas music, watched from the car. It calls the drive-through the featured piece of Christmas at Penn Medicine Park. Discover Lancaster’s “Christmas at the Lancaster Stormers” listing uses the same November 27 through December 31, 2026 window and the same stadium address, and it groups the drive-through with Christmas Tree Lane.

Prices on the operator’s page, for Monday through Sunday:

• $25 per vehicle for up to 8 passengers.
• $35 per vehicle for 9 or more passengers.
• $75 for a family season pass with unlimited entry.

The page says tickets can be bought at the entry gate or pre-purchased, and it lists Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and cash. It does not publish a separate “online versus gate” pair of prices. The $25, $35, and $75 figures are the ones on the page. Checked October 22, 2026. Source: Christmas Spirit Light Show.

Two smaller events sit on the same page. On December 6, 2026, a bike-through runs from 5:00 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. at $5 per rider, with kids under 5 free, and the page says payment is on site. On December 11, 2026, at 10:00 p.m., a dressed-up dash through the lights is listed at $40 for past participants and $45 for new participants, open to all ages, as a 5K or a 1-mile stroll. Those are not the regular drive-through rate.

Christmas Tree Lane is the walking half. The operator’s site says it is free, inside the ballpark, with over 100 decorated trees, a $2 vote that goes entirely to a nonprofit, free pictures with Santa, and live reindeer listed for December 10, December 17, and December 20. Discover Lancaster’s Christmas Tree Lane page, checked the same day, lists the walk for December 4, 2026 through December 24, 2026, Sunday through Thursday 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 10:00 p.m., and it also says the event is free and that no ticket is needed. That page notes a closure Monday, November 30 through Wednesday, December 2, which falls before the December 4 start it prints. The operator’s site did not print the December 4 start date. This guide uses Discover Lancaster for that date range and the operator for the statement that the walk is free. A $2 vote is not an admission charge. Checked October 22, 2026. Sources: the operator page above and Discover Lancaster’s Christmas Tree Lane listing.

Stone Gables Estate Christmas Light Drive-Thru

Stone Gables is the longer drive-through, in Elizabethtown, and it is the one to read carefully because the estate’s own site and the tourism listing do not say the same amount of detail. On October 22, 2026, stonegablesestate.com/upcoming-events did not print a 2026 drive-through calendar or vehicle prices. The estate’s National Christmas Center page does say the museum is open select dates from March 28 through November 21, 2026, and that it is “Opening November 20th for the Christmas Season.” That page gives the phone 717-902-9791 and the estate address 1 Hollinger Lane, Elizabethtown, PA 17022. It does not give a museum ticket price, and it does not give drive-through vehicle rates. The drive-through dates, hours, and prices below are therefore per Discover Lancaster’s event listing, not per a rate card on the estate’s site.

Discover Lancaster’s dates section says November 20, 2026 through January 2, 2027, and it says the last drive-through of the season is January 2, 2027. It lists closures on Sundays, November 23, November 24, November 25, November 26, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. The heading at the top of the same page reads “November 20, 2026 to December 30, 2026.” Those two date ranges disagree. This guide follows the dates section, because that block names the last night as January 2, 2027, and it says so here so the heading does not surprise you.

Hours in that listing: Monday through Saturday, 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., and 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. on November 28, December 5, December 12, December 19, December 21, December 22, and December 23. The listing says the event is drive-through only, with no parking and no walking around. It describes a 3-mile route, well over 1 million LED lights, and a 2026 theme, “Nativities Around the World.” Named pieces include the Star Barn Village, Herr’s Mill Covered Bridge, and a decorated Harrisburg, Lincoln and Lancaster Railroad steam train.

The Rates list on that page:

• Regular vehicle, up to 8 passengers: $30.
• Large vehicles, 9 to 20 passengers: $50.
• Small buses, 20 to 30 passengers: $100.
• Large buses, 30 or more passengers: $200.

Buses must be pre-booked at 717-902-9791. A separate Admission line on the same page lists $30 for a car up to 8 people, $50 for a car with 9 to 15 people, and $100 for a car with 16 to 23 people. That Admission line does not match the Rates list. The figures in the table on this page are the Rates list. If you are bringing a van or a bus, call before you go. The listing’s contact block also shows (717) 287-6283. The weather line in the listing is 717-902-9791: watch email and social media, or call, and the listing says related refunds are issued within 7 to 10 days. That 717-902-9791 number matches the phone on the estate’s own site.

The entrance the listing prints is not the Hollinger Lane estate address. It says to enter at Brittany’s Hope, 1160 North Market Street, Elizabethtown, PA 17022, and to type that address into a GPS. From Penn Square that pin is 21.9 miles and about 31 minutes. Checked October 22, 2026. Sources: Discover Lancaster’s Christmas Light Drive-Thru listing and Stone Gables’ National Christmas Center page.

Other dated holiday plans that checked out

Dutch Winter Wonderland is the in-county walk-through park, and it is built for younger children in a way Candylane is not. Dutch Wonderland’s special-events page lists it from November 14, 2026 through January 3, 2027. The event page itself says it begins on select dates starting November 14, and it names more than 10 activities and more than 20 rides, cookies with Santa from November 14 through December 23, visits with Santa, and holiday light shows. It does not print a single-day ticket price. It does say that buying a 2027 Gold or Platinum Pass gets this year’s Winter Wonderland free, and it says “save up to $60.” No day-ticket dollar amount is invented here. Discover Lancaster’s listing for the event gives the address as 2249 Lincoln Highway East, Lancaster, PA 17602, which is the address the Census geocoder matched. From Penn Square that pin is 4.8 miles and about 11 minutes. The park’s own listing on this site is Dutch Wonderland. Checked October 22, 2026. Sources: Dutch Wonderland special events and the Winter Wonderland page.

Strasburg Rail Road’s Santa trains are a ride, not a light field, and the railroad’s event pages are specific. The ticket links on those pages use 2026 in the event URL. The station address on the pages is 301 Gap Road, Ronks, PA 17572. From Penn Square that pin is 9.8 miles and about 21 minutes. The county train page is Strasburg Rail Road.

• Santa’s Paradise Express: Saturdays and Sundays from November 21 through December 20, plus Friday, November 27, and every day from December 21 through Christmas Eve. The page calls it a 45-minute round trip to Paradise. Online or credit-card prices are $47.70 for adults 12 and up and $37.10 for children 2 to 11. Cash at the box office, or a Strasburg Rail Road gift card, is $45 and $35. Children under 2 ride free on a lap. Parking is free. The page says Christmas trains sell out fast.
• Santa Claus Limited: December 2 through December 18, a sensory-friendly train with no carolers and no live musicians. Departures at 4:00, 5:00, 6:00, and 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and at 4:00, 5:00, and 6:00 p.m. on Fridays. Online or credit card: $42.40 adult and $31.80 child. Cash or gift card: $40 and $30. Under 2 free on a lap. The page says the ride passes twinkling Christmas lights. Parking is free.
• Night Before Christmas: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights from November 21 through December 20, plus December 21 through 23. Evening storytelling, carolers, milk and cookies, and a Santa appearance, on a 45-minute trip. Same online prices as Paradise Express, $47.70 and $37.10, or $45 and $35 cash or gift card. Under 2 free on a lap. Parking is free.

Checked October 22, 2026. Sources: Santa’s Paradise Express, Santa Claus Limited, and Night Before Christmas.

Hershey’s Chocolate World is the stop this page does not turn into a listing. The Candylane page points visitors toward a holiday visit there. Chocolate World’s own homepage, checked October 22, 2026, was still on its Halloween schedule, including experiences valid through November 1, and it did not publish Christmas dates or a holiday ticket price. Until that site does, there is nothing to put in the table.

How to plan the night

Buy from the operator’s page, and read the total. Hersheypark’s Candylane ticket block includes a “Buy Online & Save” label, and it also tells you to check back for a Candylane pre-sale, so the October 22 prices are a snapshot, not a locked rate. Christmas Spirit says the gate and a pre-purchase are both accepted. Stone Gables’ listing tells you to have an online ticket ready when staff wave you through. None of those instructions is an affiliate link. This page does not sell the tickets.

Use the hours you can actually read. Penn Medicine Park closes at 9:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and at 10:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Stone Gables closes at 8:00 p.m. except the seven nights it lists at 9:00 p.m. That is not the same as a promise that a Tuesday is quiet. The only crowd sentence in the source set is the 2025 Hershey story about Sweet Lights itself: weekends and holidays were busier, and Monday through Thursday were typically less busy. Apply that to a 2026 show only as a reason to leave earlier, not as a fact the new operators published.

Weather is a phone call, not a guess. For Stone Gables, the listing’s line is 717-902-9791, and it says refunds for a weather cancellation are issued within 7 to 10 days. For Candylane, the Winter Weather Promise is the voucher described above, not a refund, and it has conditions. Christmas Spirit’s page did not print a weather-cancellation rule on the day it was checked, so this guide does not invent one.

Pair the night with a bed only if the rest of the trip needs one. A Penn Medicine Park drive is a city evening: 0.95 miles from Penn Square, then home. A Candylane night is a 46-minute drive each way from downtown Lancaster, which is a long add-on after a Ronks show. If the trip is already built around Sight & Sound, the hotels near the theatre are the lodging comparison, and JOSHUA, not a Christmas title, is the 2026 Lancaster show through December 31. After New Year’s, when these light schedules end, the county gets quieter. The Lancaster in winter guide is the January-through-March version of the same map.

Frequently asked questions

Is Hershey Sweet Lights open in 2026?

No. On the Hersheypark Christmas Candylane page, checked October 22, 2026, Hersheypark answers “Will Hershey’s Sweet Lights be offered in 2026?” with: “No. After 20 seasons of holiday magic, Hershey Sweet Lights will not return in 2026 as we focus on growing Hersheypark Christmas Candylane.” The same answer, with one exclamation mark instead of two at the end, is on Hersheypark’s general FAQ page. The park does not say the drive-through is gone forever.

What replaced Hershey Sweet Lights?

Hersheypark says it is focusing on Hersheypark Christmas Candylane. Candylane is inside the park: select rides, a stroll through TREEville, shows, and Santa with all nine reindeer. It is not the old drive-through. For a drive-through in 2026, the Christmas Spirit Light Show runs at Penn Medicine Park in Lancaster from November 27 through December 31, and Discover Lancaster lists the Stone Gables Estate drive-thru in Elizabethtown from November 20, 2026 through January 2, 2027, with the closures named on that listing.

Is there a drive-through Christmas light show near Lancaster or Hershey in 2026?

Yes, two dated drive-throughs were on official or tourism-board pages on October 22, 2026. The Christmas Spirit Light Show is at 650 N Prince Street, Lancaster, PA 17603, November 27 through December 31, 2026. Stone Gables Estate’s drive-thru uses the entrance at 1160 North Market Street, Elizabethtown, PA 17022. Hershey Sweet Lights, the Hershey drive-through, is not returning in 2026.

How much is Hersheypark Christmas Candylane in 2026?

On October 22, 2026, the Candylane page showed a 1-Day Any Day Ticket at $66.99, with $89.95 crossed out, and a Family 4-Pack Bundle at $57 per person, with $99.95 crossed out. The 4-pack includes four admission tickets and free parking for one vehicle. A Junior/Senior Any Day Ticket was $54.99, with $89.95 crossed out. A 2-Day Any Day Ticket card showed $50/Day, with $65 crossed out. Prices are plus applicable taxes and fees, and the page says those tickets are valid on any public operating day through January 3, 2027. The same page also says “Check back soon for a Christmas Candylane ticket pre-sale!”

When do Christmas lights start in Lancaster, PA in 2026?

The earliest dated light event in this guide is Dutch Winter Wonderland. Dutch Wonderland’s special-events page lists it from November 14, 2026 through January 3, 2027, on select dates. Discover Lancaster lists the Stone Gables drive-thru from November 20, 2026. The Christmas Spirit Light Show at Penn Medicine Park starts November 27, 2026. Discover Lancaster lists Christmas Tree Lane at the same stadium for December 4 through December 24, 2026.

Can you walk through the Stone Gables Christmas lights?

No. Discover Lancaster’s Christmas Light Drive-Thru listing, checked October 22, 2026, says the event is drive-thru only, with no parking or walking around. The listing points readers to other events on the property if they want to get out of the car. The entrance it prints is 1160 North Market Street, Elizabethtown, PA 17022.

Is Christmas Candylane a drive-through?

No. Hersheypark describes Candylane as time inside the park: select family rides, a stroll through TREEville, the Twinkling Thru Time show, the Fire and Ice Experience, and a visit with Santa and all nine reindeer. The drive-through was Hershey Sweet Lights. Hersheypark says that drive-through will not return in 2026.

How far is Hersheypark from downtown Lancaster?

About 29.2 miles and 46 minutes. That is the driving route measured October 22, 2026, from 25 South Queen Street at Penn Square to the Census Bureau match for 100 Hersheypark Drive. The same measurement puts Penn Medicine Park at 0.95 miles and about 3 minutes, Dutch Wonderland at 4.8 miles and about 11 minutes, Strasburg Rail Road at 9.8 miles and about 21 minutes, and the Stone Gables entrance address in Elizabethtown at 21.9 miles and about 31 minutes.

Sources checked October 22, 2026: Hersheypark’s Christmas Candylane page and Hersheypark’s general FAQ, for the Sweet Lights answer, Candylane dates, ticket prices, address, and the Winter Weather Promise; the November 15, 2025 Hershey destination story, re-read that day, for what the two-mile, 500-display drive-through was and for the Sand Beach Road entrance used last season; christmasspiritlightshows.com for the Penn Medicine Park schedule, hours, vehicle prices, season pass, bike-through, December 11 dash, and the free walking portion; Discover Lancaster’s Christmas at the Lancaster Stormers listing and Christmas Tree Lane listing for the December 4–24 walk and the stadium dates; Discover Lancaster’s Christmas Light Drive-Thru listing for Stone Gables dates, hours, the Rates list, the conflicting Admission line, the North Market Street entrance, and the weather phone; stonegablesestate.com for the estate phone and the National Christmas Center dates, and for the absence of a drive-through rate card on the upcoming-events page; Dutch Wonderland’s special-events index and Winter Wonderland page, plus Discover Lancaster’s address for the park; Strasburg Rail Road’s three Christmas-train event pages for dates, prices, and 301 Gap Road; Hershey’s Chocolate World homepage, which did not list a Christmas calendar; and U.S. Census Bureau address matches plus an OSRM driving route from 25 South Queen Street, Lancaster, for the miles and minutes.